Tag: Blenheim Palace

Lady Randolph & Winston Churchill on Blenheim

Lady Randolph & Winston Churchill on Blenheim

I am asked what Churchill wrote and thought about his birth­place, Blenheim Palace, Wood­stock, Oxford­shire. The first words I recall are those of his moth­er Jen­nie: “with par­don­able pride.” They occur ear­ly in The Rem­i­nis­cences of Lady Ran­dolph Churchill (1908). I always loved her descrip­tion. One regrets the decline of peo­ple who can write like Jen­nie. She ranked with Lady Diana Coop­er, and I think her son’s writ­ing tal­ent was inher­it­ed from her.…

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Nazi Banners Drape Blenheim for “Transformers” Film

Nazi Banners Drape Blenheim for “Transformers” Film

 

Trans­form­ers: Blenheim Palace bedi­zened with Nazi Swastikas? File this in the over­flow­ing cat­a­logue of much ado about nothing.

Blenheim Affront

On Sep­tem­ber 25th, sev­er­al Churchill writ­ers received an email: “Urgent Media Request—the Sin.” (A typo for the Sun news­pa­per, though iron­i­cal­ly appropriate.)

“I’m a jour­nal­ist with the Sun,” we were told by a mem­ber of their staff. “I’m work­ing on a sto­ry in our paper tomor­row about a dis­gust­ing act which tar­nish­es Sir Win­ston Churchill’s mem­o­ry.” He didn’t say what, but it was easy to guess.

The dis­gust­ing act, already blast­ed around via the Inter­net, was to drape Blenheim (“Churchill’s home” accord­ing to reports) with huge Nazi ban­ners.…

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The Duke of Marlborough 1926-2014

The Duke of Marlborough 1926-2014

The Eleventh Duke: Memories. 13 April 1926 – 16 October 2014

“You shouldn’t call him ‘Your Grace,’ you know.”

It was 2005. Lady Soames was coach­ing me on a let­ter to her cousin the Duke of Marl­bor­ough. It was to ask (again) for the lease (at a friend-of-the-fam­i­ly dis­count) of the Great Hall at Blenheim Palace. Anoth­er black tie din­ner crown­ing anoth­er Churchill Tour.

“What should I call him, then? I can’t call him ‘Sun­ny,’ as you do!” (The fam­i­ly nick­name stemmed from one of the Duke’s ear­ly titles, Earl of Sun­der­land.)

“Of course not. But ‘Your Grace’ is too for­mal, or for ser­vants.…

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